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Russian Ship Becomes Theme Park
After 18 months of repairs, the Minsk, an old aircraft carrier from the former Soviet Union navy, arrived in Shenzhen on May 9 morning to become part of a military theme park. The 42,000-ton ship was led by three tugboats from Guangzhou Wenchong Shipyard.
The carrier will become the main showboat of China's first military theme park, which is called Minsk World and given the theme "war and peace."
The park is expected to open by July, according to sources from the Minsk Aircraft Carrier Industry Co Ltd, the project developer.
A developer who declined to be named has spent tens of millions of dollars on the park, including restoring the carrier and building a 50,000-square-metre land exhibition area.
The carrier served the former Soviet Union navy from 1978 to 1994, nearly 10 years ahead of its potential, because the Soviet Union split up.
It was purchased by a South Korean businessman in 1995, after key military components were removed. The Shenzhen Minsk Aircraft Carrier Industry Co Ltd bought the ship from the businessman in 1998 for scrap steel.
The grey carrier, 274 metres long and 68 metres high, has been configured as a luxury tour ship with military entertainment features on board.
All facilities, including a ship-to-sky missile launcher and anti-submarine missile outfits, were retained and decorated when the carrier was repaired in Guangzhou.
But because they have lost their war capabilities, the ship's military functions are available for education in popular science and national defence.
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